Experts scratching their heads over mites

After a second night of setting out sticky traps for the mystery bug behind all the bites in northern Illinois, state public health officials had yet to announce a positive identification Wednesday.

Attention centered on a tiny mite that plagued Kansas and Nebraska in 2004: the oak leaf gall mite, Pyemotes herfsi, an invasive species and close relative of the European straw itch mite.

Though state health officials were circumspect about naming the suspect, emergency room doctors have been downloading and printing the Kansas studies for days, and articles about the mites are hot on Internet search engines. State officials have been consulting with experts in Kansas and Nebraska.

"Right now, we haven't determined the exact culprit," said Kitty Loewy, spokeswoman for the Cook County Public Health Department.

If bitten, treat bites with hydrocortisone cream and antihistamine. Don't scratch, officials say, as that will only infect the bites. If redness from the wounds grows larger than a quarter or if streaks of red reach from the bite sites toward the chest, call a doctor or go to an emergency room; those may be signs of secondary infection from scratching.

- - -

What you should know

To protect yourself, wear long clothing, launder clothing often and shower after being outdoors near foliage, which would remove any mites before they begin munching at human skin in search of non-existent larvae. Wearing something as simple as sunscreen may foil the mites' exploratory nibbling.